Gilberto Rodríguez Orejuela
Gilberto Rodríguez Orejuela | |
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Born | Mariquita, Tolima, Colombia | 30 January 1939
Died | 31 May 2022 Butner, North Carolina, U.S. | (aged 83)
Other names | El Ajedrecista ("The Chess Player") |
Organization | Cali Cartel |
Criminal charge |
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Penalty |
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Gilberto José Rodríguez Orejuela (31 January 1939 – 31 May 2022) was a
Early life
Gilberto José Rodríguez Orejuela was born on Jan. 31, 1939, in Mariquita, Colombia, about 110 miles northwest of Bogotá. His family moved to Cali when he was a child. His father, Carlos Rodríguez, was a painter; his mother, Ana Rita Orejuela, was a homemaker. After leaving high school at 15, he began working as a drugstore clerk. He rose to become a manager, and opened his own store at age 25.[1]
Criminal career
While working his way up in the pharmacy business, Rodríguez Orejuela began his criminal career, engaging in kidnapping and then, the drug trade.[1]
Cali Cartel
During the 1970s, Rodríguez Orejuela and his brother Miguel helped to organize, along with José Santacruz Londoño and Hélmer Herrera, a loose consortium of drug trafficking gangs that came to be known as the Cali Cartel. Members cooperated in processing, shipping and distribution. The Rodríguez Orejuela brothers, as heads of the most successful of the cartel members, became the cartel leadership. Gilberto was the strategic planner and visionary, nickname "The Chess Player" for his calculated approach; Miguel oversaw day-to-day operations. The cartel maintained a low profile, avoiding flashy parties, conspicuous displays of wealth, and unnecessary violence.[1][2]
In the early 1990s, after the fall of the Medellin Cartel, the Cali Cartel emerged as the leading cocaine trafficking organization in the world.[3] They were initially primarily involved in marijuana, and branched out into cocaine during the 1980s.[citation needed] During the 1990s, it was estimated that the Cali Cartel supplied about 80% of the cocaine in the US, and 90% of the European cocaine market.[3]
On November 15, 1984, Gilberto was captured in Spain. At the time of his arrest, he was accompanied by
The Cali Cartel was less violent than its rival, the
Capture
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On 9 June 1995, Rodríguez Orejuela was arrested by the
In March 2003, Rodríguez Orejuela was rearrested by Colombian authorities in Cali, on new charges stemming from running the cartel from prison.[7][1]
Extradition to the United States
Gilberto Rodríguez Orejuela was extradited to the United States on 3 December 2004.[10] His brother Miguel was later also arrested and deported.[citation needed]
On 26 September 2006, both Gilberto and Miguel were sentenced to 30 years in prison, after pleading guilty to charges of conspiring to import cocaine to the US.[11] In the plea deal, the US agreed not to bring charges against their relatives, in exchange for asset forfeiture. The brothers' forfeited $2.1 billion in illegal profits, and the US did not charge six of their relatives with money laundering and obstructing justice. On condition that they forfeit tainted assets, including bank accounts, businesses and luxury homes, 28 family members, including sons, daughters and cousins, were removed from a US Department of Treasury sanctions list that designated them members of the Cali cartel.[12][13]
On 16 November 2006, the brothers pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to engage in money laundering. Both were sentenced to an additional 87 months in prison.[14] The two prison terms were set to run concurrently.[citation needed]
On 5 March 2018, a Colombian court sentenced eight relatives of the Rodríguez brothers to nine years in prison for laundering money that had been obtained during the Rodriguez brothers' time as heads of the Cali Cartel.[15][16] Specifically, the court found that the family had used their legitimate businesses (including the pharmacy chain Drogas La Rebaja) to launder billions of pesos. These individuals had also shifted the money through various bank accounts in order to make it appear legitimate.[citation needed]
At the time of his death, Gilberto Rodríguez Orejuela was serving a 30-year sentence at the
On 6 February 2020, Rodríguez Orejuela submitted an application to a Miami federal judge seeking compassionate early release pursuant to the
Personal life
Gilberto Rodríguez Orejuela was married to Myriam Ramirez.[1] His children include Jaime Fernando, a graduate in international commerce at the University of Grenoble, two sons who studied at Stanford University and the University of Tulsa, and a son who studied systems engineering. Rodríguez Orejuela stated that one of his daughters has an MBA and that a second is an engineer.[2]
Death
Gilberto Rodríguez Orejuela died at a prison medical center in Butner, North Carolina on 31 May 2022 at the age of 83.[19] The cause of death was a lymphoma, according to a statement released by the family.[20]
In popular culture
- In 2010 Caracol TV Series El Cartel Rodríguez Orejuela is portrayed by the actor Hermes Camelo in the guise of the character of Leonardo Villegas. A younger version of the character are portrayed by Gustavo Angarita Jr. and Juan Pablo Urrego in prequel series The Snitch Cartel: Origins.
- In the 2012 Caracol TV series Escobar, el patrón del mal, Rodríguez Orejuela is portrayed by the actor Harold Devasten as the character of Gildardo Gonzalez
- In the 2013 RCN TV series Tres Caínes, Rodríguez Orejuela is portrayed by Luis Enrique Roldán as the character of Alberto Ramírez Rajuela.
- In the 2014 RCN TV series En la boca del lobo is portrayed by Sain Castro as the character of Edilberto Ramírez Orjuela.
- In the 2015
- In the novel El ajedrecista, of writer Esteban Navarro[22] se describe a Gilberto como alguien muy influyente, que le gustaba relacionarse con estrellas del espectáculo mexicano como Roberto Gómez Bolaños Chespirito, o El Chavo del 8.
See also
- List of crime bosses convicted in the 21st century
- Notable drug lords
References
- ^ New York Times. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
- ^ TIME. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
- ^ History.com. 10 June 2019. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
- ISSN 1134-6582. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
- ^ Chepesiuk, Ron (8 September 2017). "US author tells of European connection to cartel featured in hit series Narcos". The Irish News. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
- Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
- ^ a b "Arrestado en Cali Narco Gilberto Rodríguez Orejuela - 2003-03-13". 12 March 2003.
- ^ Brodzinsky, Sibylla (8 November 2002). "Judge frees chief of Cali drug cartel". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
- ^ Toro, Juan Pablo (29 October 2002). "One Walks, The Other Doesn't". CBS News. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
- ^ "Alleged cocaine kingpin sent to U.S". USA Today. 5 December 2004.
- ^ "Colombian drug lords jailed in Panama". BBC News. 27 September 2006. Retrieved 4 January 2010.
- ^ Gaynor, Tim (25 February 2010). "U.S. indicts Colombian drug kingpins' relatives". Reuters. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
- ^ Weaver, Jay (6 February 2020). "Colombian kingpin dying in prison seeks 'compassion' from Miami judge to release him". Miami Herald. Archived from the original on 19 July 2020. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
- ^ "United States Attorney Southern District of New York" (PDF). United States Attorney’s Office. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 October 2012.
- ^ "Las trampas de los hermanos Rodríguez Orejuela para quedarse con dineros del narcotráfico (Spanish)". El Espectador. 7 March 2018. Retrieved 9 March 2018.
- ^ "Condenan a 9 años de cárcel a 8 familiares de los Rodríguez Orejuela (Spanish)". El Tiempo. 6 March 2018. Retrieved 9 March 2018.
- ^ "Inmate Locator". www.bop.gov.
- ^ "Miami federal judge rejects imprisoned cocaine kingpin's bid for 'compassionate' release". Miami Herald. 28 April 2020.
- ^ Muere Gilberto Rodríguez Orejuela en cárcel de Estados Unidos(in Spanish)
- ^ "Cali cartel boss Gilberto Rodríguez Orejuela dies in US prison". The Guardian. 1 June 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
- ^ "Narcos (TV Series 2015–2017)" – via www.imdb.com.
- ^ Juan Gabriel (1 June 2022). "El día que Gilberto Rodríguez Orejuela casi ataca a Juan Gabriel por darle un beso". Retrieved 2 June 2022.